I Need A Fake Date
by hedgehogthewriter
Summary: Bellarke modern au. Prompt: "a cute, adorable, fluffy bellarke modern au with a happy ending (bonus points for fake dating)". One-shot.
Clarke was just settling in at her favorite table at her favorite Starbucks with her favorite drink when her best friend startled her by plopping down into the seat across from her.

"What are you doing here, Bellamy?" she asked, somewhat annoyed to have her "Clarke time" interrupted.

"I need a favor," Bellamy replied, looking a little nervous.

Clarke rolled her eyes. When did Bellamy not need help with something? Ever since they'd first met in their freshman year of college, Clarke had had to help Bellamy out of multiple crazy situations. Drunk bar brawls, crazy professors, paint on his dorm room wall, you name it.

"What is it this time?" she asked.

Bellamy's eyes shifted to the table, refusing to make eye contact with Clarke. "I, uh, I need a date."

Clarke shook her head. Surely she'd heard him wrong. "I'm sorry, what?"

Bellamy sighed and looked up at Clarke. "My family's having this big important dinner on Saturday and I kind of told my mom I have a girlfriend. She's expecting to meet this girlfriend at the dinner."

"You don't have a girlfriend!" Clarke exclaimed. She wanted to smack Bellamy in the side of his head for being so stupid. Why would he tell his mom he had a girlfriend if he knew he didn't?"

"Yeah, I know! But every year my family gets together and all my cousins bring dates and everyone always bugs me about not having a girlfriend, and I was sick of it, so I told them I had a girlfriend."

Clarke leaned back in her seat. "So what are you going to do?"

Bellamy bit his lip. "I was kind of hoping you'd pretend to be my girlfriend."

Clarke glared at him. "That's insane!"

Bellamy grabbed Clarke's hands and looked deeply into her eyes. "Please, Clarke. If I show up without a date, I'll never live it down. Please."

Clarke knew she couldn't hold up against Bellamy's puppy dog stare. She groaned as she pulled her hands out of his. "Fine! I'll do it! But you owe me big time!"

Bellamy's smile could light up the night. "Thank you! I'll pick you up at 6:00 on Saturday!"

* * *

"So if anyone asks, we met in Freshman English, have been dating for five months, and our first date was to see Avengers." Bellamy coached Clarke as they drove to his parents' house.

Clarke rolled her eyes. "I know, you've told me that three times already!"

"Well, I just want to make sure we get it right! It has to be believable."

Clarke sighed. It was going to be a long night.

Finally, they pulled into a driveway at a suburban house that looked identical to all its neighbors. Bellamy jumped out of the car and ran to the other side to open Clarke's door for her, surprising Clarke.

"You didn't have to do that," she said.

Bellamy just shrugged. "It seemed like something a boyfriend would do."

Clarke smiled.

The door opened before they even reached the first step to the porch. A middle-aged woman with dark brown hair opened the door, and Clarke assumed it was Bellamy's mom.

"Bellamy!" The woman exclaimed, pulling Bellamy in for a giant hug. She pulled away after a moment and noticed Clarke. Her smile grew even bigger.

"You must be Clarke!" She pulled Clarke in for a hug as well. "I'm Aurora. Bellamy has told us so much about you!"

Clarke was confused. Bellamy had just said he needed a fake date to play his fake girlfriend. He didn't say he had already told his family her name. Had he already told his family about her specifically? She tried to catch Bellamy's eye, but he was looking into the house, seemingly avoiding her.

"Dinner is just about on the table, you should go find your seats now," Aurora told Clarke.

Clarke and Bellamy made their way into the house and Bellamy led her to the dining room, where there was a long table set for eleven people. A man at the head of the table who looked like an older version of Bellamy was talking to a man next to him.

"Clarke, this is my family. Family, this is Clarke, my girlfriend." Bellamy announced. Clarke hoped her smile looked natural as Bellamy pointed out and named each of his family members sitting at the table. She knew she had forgotten every single name as soon as he said it, so she hoped she wouldn't need the information later. She and Bellamy took their seats and Clarke did her best not to look awkward or out of place.

Aurora returned from the kitchen, carrying trays of food. Everyone looked up at the food and all other conversation ceased. As soon as all the food was on the table, everyone started grabbing at the food and eating.

"So Clarke," said the man at the head of the table, whom Clarke guessed was Bellamy's father. "How did you and Bellamy meet?"

Clarke wiped her hands on her napkin. "Um, it was in Freshman English class. We just sat next to each other almost everyday, and we just kind of became friends." That part wasn't a lie, they really had met in Freshman English.

"That's nice," said Aurora, leaning in to the table to get closer to Clarke. "So where did Bellamy take you on a first date? Somewhere nice?"

"Actually, we saw a movie. The Avengers." Clarke looked at Bellamy and he gave her a small smile and a thumbs up hidden under the table.

Clarke was starting to get nervous. She didn't like all the attention everyone was giving her. She felt like she was on trial and that if she made one mistake everything would go wrong and she would be punished somehow.

"I have to go to the bathroom," she said quickly, needing an escape.

Aurora blinked. "Of course, it's just down the hall."

Clarke stood up abruptly and quickly walked to the hall. She turned the corner and walked a little ways farther before stopping and leaning against the wall. This was so much harder than she had expected. She didn't want Bellamy to get in trouble with his family, but she didn't think she was being believable enough.

"Are you okay?"

Clarke turned around to see Bellamy walking over to her. She shook her head. "I don't think I'm very good at this. There's no way they believe we've been dating for five months. I'm sorry, I just don't know what I'm doing." Clarke's breathing was picking up faster and she felt like she was hyperventilating.

Bellamy grabbed her forearms. "Shh, it's okay. Clarke, listen to me. Everything is fine. Don't worry about it." Clarke was still looking down at the ground, too nervous to make eye contact. "Clarke, look at me."

She looked up into Bellamy's dark, comforting eyes. "It's all going to be okay. Got it?" He said soothingly.

Clarke nodded.

"Is everything okay over there?" yelled a voice around the corner. It sounded like Bellamy's father, and he was getting closer and closer.

Clarke started panicking again. She shook her head. "I can't do this!" she whispered to Bellamy. "I can't—"

Bellamy's dad was still getting closer and Clarke looked like she was freaking out about something. Bellamy couldn't think of how to calm Clarke down fast enough, so he just leaned in and kissed her.

They were still kissing when Bellamy's father turned the corner and stopped abruptly.

"Oh, my apologies. I didn't mean to interrupt." He then turned around and walked back the way he'd come.

Bellamy pulled away from Clarke and looked to see her reaction. She was just staring back at him incredulously.

"Um, I'm sorry, I didn't know how to stop you from panicking in front of my dad."

"No, um, it's okay."

"We should, um, go."

Clarke simply nodded in answer, and they walked back to the dining room.

* * *

"So, I owe you a big favor now, huh?" Bellamy asked as he pulled away from his parents' house.

"Why did your mom already know my name?" Clarke asked instead of answering.

"Oh, well… I kind of told her you were my girlfriend before I asked if you'd be my fake date."

"Why?"

"Well, when I said I had a girlfriend my family wanted details, so I told them about you as if you were my girlfriend."

Clarke thought about this for a moment. "So I was just the first girl you could think of to use as your fake girlfriend?"

"No, I used your name because I kind of wished you were my girlfriend." Bellamy looked extremely uncomfortable, as though he would be hiding his face if he weren't driving.

"Oh."

"Sorry."

"No, it's fine." Clarke stayed silent for a minute. "I was thinking, about the favor you owe me."

"Yeah?" Bellamy asked, clearly happy about the change in subject.

"How about you take me to a dinner and a movie or something and you won't have to lie to your family next time about having a girlfriend."

The car swerved, and Clarke thought they probably would have gotten into an accident if there had been other cars on the road.

"Are you serious?" Bellamy asked.

Clarke nodded before remembering that Bellamy was driving and couldn't see her. "Yeah, I'm serious. I mean, if you want to."

Bellamy nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I want to."


End file.
